Oil separator and muffler



July 14, 1959 s. v. LEININGER OIL SEPARATOR AND MUFFLER Filed May 181956 Fig.

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W 2 m M/y /2 \wmomomooo 6 2 ea m 2 w e e 2 e Z a 2 0 Sylvan V. Lem/'ngerUnited States Patent OIL SEPARATOR AND MUFFLER Sylvan V. Leininger,Montpelier, Ohio Application May 18, 1956, Serial No. 585,692

3 Claims. (Cl. 183-34) This invention relates to the combination of oilseparator and mufiler.

An object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive deviceto separate atomized oil from the exhaust gases of air motors, airclutches, air brakes, air cylinders or any other device having need forthe separation of such oil from the carrier gases and/ or for quieteroperation. Air motors and clutches are oiled by injecting oil into theworking air. The present invention has for one of its primary purposesthe provision of such a device which will function as a nrufiier forquieter operation and which will effectively separate an extremely highpercentage of the oil from the exhaust gases (usually air) so that whenexpelled from the device, the exhaust gases are generally air in almostpure form.

Heretofore, it has been the custom to either expel the atomized oiltogether with the air that carries it into the building enclosure orpiping into the outside air or to a drain. The former method formsexplosion and health hazards, while the latter method is expensive andis not feasible in many instances where certain equipment must beportable. Accordingly, a further object of this invention is to overcomethese difficulties by providing a device which is adapted to beinstalled on the equipment so as to become a part thereof withoutinterfering with the portability of the equipment. 7

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a combined airpurifying device and mufiler which is constnucted with a number ofbafiles arranged in a particular way so that a number of pockets areformed in which the exhaust gases, such as air laden with oil vapors,are free to swirl and flow through the various stages of the deviceuntil they finally are discharged through a filter, whereby during eachof the flow changes made by the baffles and perforated panels on thebaflles, the oil is separated and the machine quieted.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawing forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of a device which is constructed inaccordance with the principles of the invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view taken on a line 22of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of Figure2; and, t

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on a line 4-4 of Figure2.

In the accompanying drawing there is a combined oil separator andmuffler that is constructed in accordance with the principles of theinvention. The device comprises a cylindrical casing having a side wall12 together with a top wall 14 and a bottom wall 16 which are fixed inplace. The bottom wall 16 is fixed as by being soldered or welded, whilethe top wall 14 is fixed by seating on the upper edge of the side wall12 and being bolted in place. A stud 18 is coaxially arranged in thecasing 12 and is fixed at its lower end to a partition 20 which issecured on the inside of the casing below the upper edge thereof. Stud18 protrudes through an opening in top wall 14 when the latter is inplace, and nut 22 is threaded on the upper end of the stud in order tohold the cover fastened releasably in place. A filter 24 made offiltering material, as steel wool or Fiberglas, is packed on thepartition 20 and is held separably in place by means of the top wall 14.A number of discharge outlet openings 26 are in wall 14 While there areopenings 28 in the partition 20.

Side wall 12 has an opening which constitutes an inlet 30 for theexhaust gases from the equipment to which the device 10 is attached. Anytype of standard coupling may be used for this purpose. Sediment chamber32 is formed in the bottom of the casing by a part of the side wall 12below inlet 30 and by the bottom wall 16. The latter has a drain opening34 which may be provided with a valve or a plug as at 36 in order todrain the sediment chamber 32. A liquid drain plate 38 is fixed to apart of the side wall 12 below inlet opening 30 and is spaced from theopposite part of side wall 12. This drain plate slopes downwardly towardthe opposite side of the side wall of the casing for the liquid that iscondensed in the casing or that is otherwise extracted from the gasespassing through mufile-r 10. Plate 38 materially reduces surfaceevaporation by preventing the gases that enter inlet 30 from being sweptacross the top surface of the liquid in chamber 32.

A first baffle plate 40 is fixed, as by being soldered or otherwiseconnected, to the interior of thecasing and specifically, to the sidewall 12 thereof above the inlet 30. Baffle plate 40 is imperforate andslopes downwardly toward and through the central, longitudinal axis ofthe casing. A support in the form of a downwardly extending peripheralflange 42 is fixed with first baflle plate 40 and it accommodates aperforated panel 44 held parallel to the general plane of the firstbaffle plate 40; The edges of the plate or panel 44 are fixed to thesupport 42 and to the side wall 12 above inlet 30. A second bafile plate46 is fixed to the lower surface of first plate 40 and is arranged atright angles to it. Second plate 46 has a support flange 48 along itsedges on which perforated plate or panel 50 is fixed, plates 46 and 50passing through passage 52 in perforated plate 44. Baffle plates 40 and46 together with their perforated plates 44 and 50 form a forwardlyopening pocket 56 which confronts the gases as they pass through theinlet 30. These gases are swirled in pocket 56 and are forced downwardlythrough passage 58 formed by the upper surface of plate 38 and the loweredges of plate 46, panel 50 and support flange 48. Thereafter, the gasesflow into pocket 60 that is formed by a part of first baffle plate 40and the second baffle plate 46. After the gases swirl in pocket 60, theypass through passage 62 that is formed between the outer edges of plate40, panel 44 and support 42. Thereafter, the gases progress upwardlythrough passage 62 and into pocket 64 wherein they swirl and movethrough passage 66 which intercommunicates pocket 64 with pocket 68 andthe passage 70. The latter opens into a chamber 72 that is between thepartition 20 and the top surface of a third baifie plate 74. From here,the gases pass through the openings on opposite sides of the filter 24and are discharged in a clean condition to the atmosphere.

The pockets 64 and 68 together with passages 66 and 70 are formed by thethird baflie plate 74 and fourth baffie plate 76 that is fixed to thethird baffle plate at rlght angles thereto and arranged in a mannerquite 51min lar to the arrangement of the first and second baffleplates. Third baffle plate 74 is secured to the inner surface of theside wall 12 at a place opposite to the side wall portion having inlet30. In addition, it has a support 78 secured to it, the latteraccommodating and holding panel 80 that is perforated and arrangedparallel to the plane of baffle plate 74. The fourth bafile plate has asupport in the form of flange 82 accommodating the perforated panel 84,the latter being parallel to the fourth bafile plate 76 and like thefourth plate is fixed to the undersurface of plate 74. Pocket 64 isformed between the third and fourth plates, with pocket 68 being formedbetween a part of the third plate and the fourth plate. Passage 66 isformed between the fourth plate and the top surface of the first plate'70, while the outer edge of the third bafile plate and a part ofsupport 73 together with a part of side wall 12 constitutes passage 70that opens into the chamber 72.

In use, as the gases pass through the casing in a manner describedpreviously and shown by the arrows on Figure 2, the oil in the gasesaccumulates on the many surfaces presented to them as they passtherethrough in the devious travel required by the arrangement ofbafiles, passages, pockets, and parts. The sediment including the oilsettles to the sediment chamber 32 for periodic drain ing through theopening 34. The gases pass through the filter 24 and the dischargeoutlets 26 for venting to the atmosphere in a clean condition.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will bereadily understood and further explanation is believed to beunnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction shown and described, andaccordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resortedto, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. An oil separator and muffler for exhaust gases comprising a casinghaving a top wall, a bottom wall and a side wall, said casing having alongitudinal central axis, said side wall having a gas inlet betweensaid top and bottom walls with the lower part of said side wall and saidbottom wall constituting a sediment chamber, a downwardly inclined firstbaffle plate secured to said side wall within said casing and locatedabove said inlet and sloped downwardly toward the central axis of saidcasing, a support fixed to said first baffle plate, a perforated panelsecured to said support and to said side wall and located parallel toand beneath said first bafiie plate, said perforated panel and firstbafile plate being spaced from each other, a second baffie plate fixedto said first bafiie plate and normal to said first bafiie plate andforming with said first baffie plate a forwardly opening pocket for thegases, at second perforated panel spaced slightly from and secured tosaid second bafiie plate, said second perforated panel also secured tosaid first bafile plate, the space between the outer edge of said firstbafile plate and the opposing part of said casing side wall forming agas passage, a third baffle plate secured to the side wall of saidcasing and located above said first and second bafile plates and saidpassage, a third perforated panel, a support secured to said thirdbatfie plate, said third perforated panel secured to the support on saidthird baffie plate of said casing, a fourth bafile plate secured to saidthird baffle plate and normal to said third baflle plate, a supportattached to said fourth bafile plate, a perforated panel parallel tosaid fourth bafiie plate and secured to said third bafiile plate and thesupport on said fourth bafile plate respectively, said third and fourthbaffle plates forming therebetween a pocket which faces said passage,and the outer edges of said fourth hafile plate being spaced from thesurface of said first bafiie plate to form a second passage, and theouter edge of said third baffle plate being spaced from the oppositepart of said side wall to form a third passage.

2. The oil separator and muffler of claim 1 wherein there is a drain inthe lower part of said casing for the sediment chamber, a liquid drainplate located below said first bafile plate and above said drain and inspaced relationship to said first and second bafile plates and panelsattached thereto.

3 The separator and muffler of claim 2 wherein there is a filter aboveall of said baffle plates in said casing, and a gas discharge outlet insaid casing and in registry with said filter.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS131,807 Bassett Oct. 1, 1872 240,320 Mallinckrodt Apr. 19, 1881 297,039Wallace Apr. 15, 1884 570,790 Gaiennie Nov. 3, 1896 1,359,547 ThomasNov. 23, 1920 1,778,078 Kinney Oct. 14, 1930 1,948,180 MacLachlan Feb.20, 1934 2,168,512 Browning Aug. 8, 1939 2,176,498 Hickman Oct. 17, 1939FOREIGN PATENTS 38,596 France Mar. 24, 1931 (Addition to No. 681,141)23,852 Denmark Nov. 29, 1918

